Photograph
Galaxy M104
An astrophotograph of M104, the Sombrero Galaxy, showing its bright core and distinctive dark dust lane.
Beyond the frame
The galaxy resembles an almost perfect sombrero because we see its disk at a steep angle. The dark band is a broad ring of cold dust viewed nearly edge-on, while the enormous luminous halo is made mostly of old stars and globular clusters. This unusual combination makes M104 appear to be part spiral galaxy and part elliptical galaxy.